Applying Voice Search Optimizations to B2B Sites Will Only Help You Get Ahead of The Game

Not only is voice search growing in the B2C market, it is also growing in the business-to-business world as well. Even executives and business owners have jumped on the voice search bandwagon. A recent study reported that 90% of executives research using their mobile devices before making a purchase decision and50% use voice search in the office.

What’s the Difference Between SEO and VSO?

Many of the principals align when it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Voice Search Optimization (VSO). The most significant difference is that voice queries are more conversational; so think about how you would ask a question or speak to a coworker. That’s the approach you want to take when writing content to optimize for voice search: not only should your content read well, it should be spoken well.

Using the Right Keywords

Because voice search queries are typically longer and more specific than typed queries and often in the form of a question, be sure tooptimize for long-tail keywords. Focus on the keywords that people will be using in their searches and think about the who, what, where, when, why and how questions the customer is asking. Write valuable, brief content using long-tail keywords that answer those questions.

The Importance of Featured Snippets

A Featured Snippet is content that appears at the top of a results page in Google’s Answer Box. Featured Snippets can be bulleted lists, graphics, charts, and descriptive paragraphs. If you have the Featured Snippet (often referred to as position zero), the voice assistant will provide the information pulled from the Featured Snippet and will even provide your company name. While ranking is important in SEO, it’s even more important for voice search. If youland the featured snippet, you have optimized for both SEO and VSO, which increases brand awareness and authority.

Mobile Optimization and Site Speed

Optimizing your site for mobile will also help improve site speed. This basic SEO principle can have a major impact on VSO. A large part of voice search is conducted on a mobile device because of the convenience and the response time is quicker than human interaction. Mobile optimizations and a fast loading site help improve the overall user experience. A two-second difference in load time can increase user abandonment rate by 32%, that’s why website speed is so important.

FAQ’s

If you don’t already have a FAQ page, now is the time to add one. An FAQ page should provide valuable, short and informative answers to commonly asked questions for your industry or business.

Create easy-to-understand content and optimize for voice search by using long-tail keywords.

A voice assistant should be able to read your content out loud and provide the best results for your customers.

If you see “People Also Ask” boxes for your keywords, create content that answers those questions as well.

Business Listings

Be sure to claim your Google My Business and Bing Places for Business and make sure they are up to date and consistent. Because most voice assistants allow users to call businesses, you’ll want to make sure that your contact information is correct. Nearly88% of mobile searches include the query “near me”. if your B2B serves local clients this step is even more critical. Also, be sure to enable reviews as part of your business listing and monitor and respond back to reviews.

Key Takeaways

These are just a few of the many voice search optimizations you can make to your website. It’s estimated that more thanone billion voice searches are conducted every month and by the year 2020 it’s estimated that 50% of all searches will be voice searches. Voice search is here to stay, and if you’re not optimizing your site for voice search, you’re going to be missing out. Not only does this allow another opportunity to get in front of another target audience, it also builds brand recognition.

Optimize Your website for Voice Search Today!

Contact Ecreativeworks to take the first steps towards optimizing for voice search and stay tuned for more voice search blog posts in the future!

Written by Patrice Isdahl: Digital Marketing Specialist at Ecreativeworks